The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1887-04-13
OUR WORLD As1r LOOKS IN SPACE.
A Graphic Description of the Planet ON
Which We Live, - It would Appear
TO an Observer Well Placed for Look
fnR ne ft.


A Graphic Description OF the Planet ON
which We Live, as 1t Would Appear
to an Observer Well Placed Tor Look
ing att.
II we imagine an observer contemplate
ing the earth from . convenient dis
tance In space. and scrutinizing It's fea-
lures as 1t rolls before him, we may
suppose him to be struck with the fact
that 1l-l6ths Of It's surface are covered
with water, and that the land Is SO UNI
equally distributed that from one point
OF view he would see hemisphere
almost exclusively oceanic, while nearly
the whole Of the dry land 10 gathered In
the opposite hemisphere.
He might observe that tho great 0ce-
anic area Of the Pacific and AntartIc
oceans is dotted with islands--like o
shallow pool with stones rising above It's
surface--as II It's general depth were
small 10 comparison with its area.
He might also notice that q mass or
belt Of land surrounds each pole, and
that the northern ring sends OF to the
southwark three vast tongues Of land
and Of mountain chains, terminating re-
spectively In South America, South
Africa and Australia. towards which fee
bier and insular processes are given
on by the Antnrtic continental macs.
This, as some geographers have OBJ
served. gives rudeiy three.rlbbed as
pect to the earth, though two Of the
three ribs are crowded together and form
the Europ-Asian mass or double conti-
nent. while the third Is isolated In the
single continent Of America.
He might also observe that the north
ern girdle IL cut across, so that the
Atlantic opens by wide space Into the
Arctic sea, while tho Pacific is contract
ed towards the north, but continent
with the Antartic ocean. The Atlantic
IL also relatively deeper and less encum-
bered with islands than the Pacific.
which has the higher ridges near Its
shores, constituting what some visitors
to the Pacific coast OF America have not
inaptly called the "back Of the world. :"
while the wider slopes face the narrower
ocean, into which, for this reason, che
greater part Of the drainage OF the land
Is poured.
The Pacific and the Atlantic. though
both depressions or iattensngs OF the
earth, ara different In age, character and
conditions; and the Atlantic, though the
smaller, is the older, ard from the geo.
logical point Of view, In some respects
the more important OF the two.
II our imaginary observer had the
means of knowing anything Of the rock
formations OF the continents. he would
notice that those bounding the North
Atlantic are In general OF great age,
some belonging to the Laurentian sys.
tenn. On the other hand, no would
see that many Of the mountain langea
along the Pacific are comparatively new.
and that modern igneous action occurs
In connects with them.
Thus he might be led to believe that
the Atlantic, though comparatively mar.
row, is an older feature of the earth's
surface, while the Pacific belongs to
more modern times.
But he would note In connection with
this that the oldest rocks Of the great
continental masses are mostly toward
s.sss5ir northern ends, and that the bor-
ders of the northern ring OF land and
certain ridges extending southwards
from It constitute the most ancient and
permanent elevations OF the earth's crust
though now greatly surpassed BY noun
tains OF more recent age nearer the
Equator.
An observer looking at the earth from
without would notice that tho margins
OF the Atlantic and the main lines Of
direction OF It's mountain chains are
northeast and southwest. and north
west and southeast, as II some early
causes had determined the occurrence OF
elevations along great circles Of the
earth's surface tangent to the polar
lrcles.--tSir W. Dawson.